Property variation of Ni-W electroformed mold for micro-press molding

We proposed a simple method to fabricate a Ni-W electroformed mold for glass micro-press molding. For example, borosilicate glass (D263) was molded using the Ni-W electroformed mold. A Ni-W electroformed mold with a fine line was fabricated by photolithography and electroforming technology. Additionally, the Ni-W electroformed mold did not require a release layer. As the result of molding D263 at 883 K, the minimum pitch of the glass pattern was the same as that of the Ni-W electroformed mold. We argue that the crystallization of amorphous Ni-W occurred with the activation energy derived from the heating of micro-press molding. The heating temperature was 833 K. Additionally, the release characteristics of a Ni-W film were improved by increasing the percentage of W. In terms of the thermochemical stability and high content rate of W, we indicated that Ni-W electroformed molds can be used repeatedly for glass micro-press molding.